My easy Broccoli Soup is a simple Cream of Broccoli Soup that’s thick and creamy with an extra hit of flavour from cheddar cheese! Essentially just throw it all in a pot, and you’re just 20 minutes away from a creamy, cheesy bowl of comfort under 300 calories.
Don’t forget warm crusty bread for dunking!
Broccoli Soup
I’m long overdue for a “green” recipe!! And there’s plenty of green in this recipe, with two giant heads of broccoli in it…..though there’s a decent wack of CHEESE to! 😉
But seriously, I joke about this being cheesy and there definitely IS cheese flavour in this. But because of the way I make this, it’s creamy and cheesy but it’s still rather healthy, clocking in at 280 calories if you make this without cream, and just 360 calories with.
A little different to the usual…
You’ll find many creamy broccoli soups are made with a roux, being melted butter mixed with flour which thickens the soup, then broccoli pieces are tossed in and cooked in that thickened soup.
I prefer making broccoli soup by cooking the broccoli until soft then blitzing it up to make a naturally thick and creamy soup. This way you actually get lovely broccoli flavour in the soup, rather than a generic creamy broth with bits of broccoli in it. Bonus is that it’s healthier!
What you need for creamy Broccoli Soup
Here’s all you need:
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broccoli – fresh or frozen (lots – 700g/1.4lb!)
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butter, garlic and onion – flavour base
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chicken or vegetable broth/stock + water – for simmering / soup broth
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cheese & cream for finishing
Cream is optional! Does it make it tastier? Of course it does! Anyone who tells you otherwise is outright lying. It adds a layer of richness that you don’t get if you skip it or use milk instead.
But I make it without cream most of the time because cream isn’t part of my standard weekly shop. Still delicious, still creamy, still cheesy – just better for your waistline!
How to make it
And here’s how to make it. A quick saute of garlic and onion to create the flavour base, then tip everything else in a simmer away: chicken or vegetable stock/broth, water, broccoli and potato.
When the broccoli is very tender (a good 15 minutes or so) blitz away until it all purees into a thick, creamy soup. Then stir in the cream and cheese (the heat melts it super quickly) and serve.
The hit of cheddar cheese in this broccoli soup adds flavour and an element of tasty naughtiness into an otherwise very healthy soup. 😈
I stir most in the soup but I like to reserve bit to sprinkle on top. Because by the time the soup gets to the table, that extra cheese starts to ooze so when you dunk the bread into it, it looks like this…..
There really is something about dunking crusty bread into thick and creamy soups, isn’t there??? Luckily, I have a decent selection of soup dunkers around these parts!!
Soup Dunkers
So – if I haven’t convinced you already, one more reason to make this Broccoli Soup is that it freezes 100% perfectly and lasts for days and days in the fridge. It’s creamy and comforting, filling and yet HEALTHY and full of nutrition.
Win, win, win! – Nagi x
Watch how to make it
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Easy Broccoli Cheese Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp (15g) butter (or olive oil)
- 2 garlic cloves , minced
- 1 onion , diced (brown, white yellow)
- 4 cups (1 litre) chicken broth / stock , low sodium (or veg stock)
- 1.5 cups (325ml) water
- 700g / 1.4lb) broccoli florets (2 large broccoli + diced peeled stem, Note 1)
- 2 potatoes , peeled and diced into 1.5cm / 2/3" cubes
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1.5 cups (150g) cheddar cheese , shredded (or other cheese of choice)
- 3/4 cup (165ml) cream or milk
To Serve (optional)
- Cream, for drizzling
- Extra grated cheese
Instructions
- Melt butter in a large pot over medium high heat. Add onion and garlic, saute for 2 minutes until onion is softened.
- Add broth/ water, broccoli, potato, salt and pepper. Bring to simmer, then place the lid on, turn the heat down to medium high and cook for 20 minutes or until the broccoli is soft.
- Turn stove off (but leave on stove). Puree using a stick blender until smooth (Note 2).
- Stir in cream, then add cheese a handful at a time, stirring in between to melt.
- Taste and add more salt if desired.
- Ladle into bowls. Drizzle with cream and top with extra grated cheese, if desired.
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
Originally published 6 January 2016, updated 21 October 2019 with new photos, step photos, new video and most importantly, Life of Dozer section added!
More creamy soups without cream
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Homemade Cream of Chicken Soup – bid Heinz goodbye!
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Browse all Soups
Life of Dozer
Such focus and determination…for a cherry tomato of all things!! 😂
I love soup and this one did not disappoint, I had two bowls with fresh buttered bread and partner had 3 and he got up earlier this morning to heat some up, put it in a flask and took it to work with 4 rounds of bread and he still wanted more the fatty, but I don´t blame him. A friend is getting a bowl too later and then all gone, but this one will be made again and again and again, is it weird to get excited by soup? x
Loved this soup.
This soup is delicious and so simple!!
I make it regularly!
I dont bother with roux or cream. Use chicken oxo cubes for the stock. I add a handful of cheese after Ive pureed it that melts in. Its on the stove now for tomorrows lunch. Wet and miserable in NZ today. Best and easiest recipe ever.. 10 minutes of prep to start and a puree at the end
To make washing up easier make sure to blend first .. Then add the cheese. Otherwise the cheese sticks to the stick blender. Blend and then stir in the cheese.. Made this at least 8 times but learnt from the washing up. PS got brocolli today from countdoun Manukau NZ for 1.20 per head x
Love love love this soup! Made for the first time today and it was a winner all round! Really nice and filling! We didn’t have any cream, but milk did the trick!
I’m recovering from covid and was craving broccoli soup (weird, since I’ve never had it before). I knew I’d seen one here and you didn’t let me down. I didn’t have any cream/milk but it was delicious without it – the potato really makes it look and feel creamy. Will add this to my winter soup repertoire.
I hope you are feeling better Annabel! N x
Best broccoli soup recipe ever! The blended potatoes make it creamy all on its own. To make a lower fat version I omitted tte cheese and only put 1/4 cup of cream (+1/2 cup skim milk) but it was still rich, creamy and delicious! Thanks for the great recipes Nagi. Everything from your website has been a hit so far!
Thanks for that feedback Ae! I am glad you are enjoying my recipes!! N x
I made this for tea last night. I was amazed at how good it tasted considering the little effort. I pretty much stuck to the recipe, my wife said it was so good I could stay another night.
😂😂😂 That was nice of her!! N x
Thank you so much for this delicious soup. I love your recipes. They are so easy to follow and the added information you provide is greatly appreciated ❤️
This was really delish.
My husband (who cringed a little when I said we were having broccoli soup) loved it too. The kids also ate their whole bowls. A winner all-round.
I served it with some cornbread too.
Will be making this one again
Nagi, I have been cooking since I was around 6 years old. I grew up watching Alton Brown, Ina Garten, Rachel Ray, and countless others with my grandma and she would always invite me to help her in the kitchen. You make me feel like a kid again with your recipes! Every time I make something with your guiding words I am transported to the kitchen with my grammy years ago just enjoying every second. Every time I have an ingredient on hand that I want to use in a new way I search “[ingredient] recipetineats” you have never EVER let me down. Some of my favorites and crowd pleasers are your sun dried tomato chicken, beef stroganoff, and now this broccoli soup! Thank you so much for all of your hard work. Your recipes bring my family and me together for a yummy good time at least once a week. Please don’t ever stop posting!!
Another winner from Nagi. I pretty much followed the recipe but kept some of the sweetest flowerets of the broccolini head aside and added them in after I had blitzed the soup. I used some small old, thin-skinned potatoes that were languishing in the crisper, which I cut up without peeling. Potatoes add to the satisfying texture of the soup.
I love this soooop! Tip: leave out the potato and water and replace the cheddar with plenty of good stilton and you’ve got a real gourmet meal.
Hi Nagi, Can I replace potatoes with something else?
FIVE servings? For whom?? Giants? For one person, I made half the recipe (which used 2 heads of broccoli), and ended up freezing half of that. It’s my belief that the Internet does weird things to recipe quantities. Anyway… It was very good and I will no doubt make it again; will be copying out the recipe.
This soup freezes well and reheats even better. I make three quarts and that my lunch for a week.